


Caring for the Workaholic

by Fu_yu



Series: Dating Detectives: Non-Kira AU [1]
Category: Death Note (Anime & Manga)
Genre: Alternate Universe - No Kira (Death Note), Fluff, M/M, Mello washes Near's hair, Meronia, Really cute gays, Romance, Workaholic Near, just two guys being gays
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-11
Updated: 2020-08-11
Packaged: 2021-03-06 00:54:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,365
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25840942
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Fu_yu/pseuds/Fu_yu
Summary: Near's got a tendency to work. A lot. That's all he tends to do when he gets into the swing of things. So much so that he lacks any sort of self-control, never takes breaks, barely eats, barely showers... it's enough to make Mello sick with worry.
Relationships: Mello | Mihael Keehl/Near | Nate River
Series: Dating Detectives: Non-Kira AU [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1878934
Comments: 14
Kudos: 42





	Caring for the Workaholic

Blue eyes slowly opened, greeted by the rays of sunlight that broke through the curtains in the apartment's master bedroom window. A small grunt left the blonde boy, who'd yawn and, with another smaller groan, roll over onto his other side, not only to get the sun out of his eyes, but to check and see if his boyfriend was there.

And, to his dismay, Near was nowhere to be seen.

"Son of a bitch," sighed Mello, feeling his stomach already begin to act up as he got up out of bed. Near always did this, _always_ \- he'd never come to bed, all he'd do is sit at that desk of his and work. Work, work, work. Not even eat! And poor Mello could do nothing to drag him out of that state, nothing to try and get him away from his desk to enjoy life, even for just a moment.

Down the short hallway walked the almost-naked Mello, whose figure wore little more than a pair of black underwear shorts as pyjamas, entering the living and dining room area of the apartment. And, sure enough, there sat Near, at the very head of the table. With his head on the desk. Snoring. Sleeping, finally. Still suffering from an acute case of eyeball bags, but sleeping nonetheless.

Rolling his eyes, Mello wasted no time in preparing and turning on the coffee machine, letting it do it's thing whilst he made his way over to Near, being sure to leave everything on the table exactly the way it was - he'd made that mistake once, and boy, Near wasn't happy having to find his way back to his train of thought. So, to avoid another instance, Mello would simply just turn Near, in his chair, away from the table and towards him, leaning over and wrapping his arms around his boyfriend's torso to then pull him up and out of his seat. Still snoring, mind you.

Then came the next challenge. Deciding what to do with the sleepy, white-haired boy. Or, at least, what to do first. Get him a change of clothes? Some breakfast? Wait for the coffee to be done? Put him in bed? Mello considered a wide variety of options as he gently scooped up his boy in his arms, carrying him bridal style as he paced around a bit, before a smell hit his nose.

The smell of stinky boy.

Looking down at the smaller detective in his arms, Mello could see it all over. He hadn't showered in what smelled like years, with a hideous build-up of grease in his hair causing each individual hair to stick to another, creating an oily mess of his beautiful white hair. At least it helped Mello identify what needed to be done first - a bath.

It took a bit of time in the lowering-down department, but eventually, Mello was able to gently set the boy down in the bath, making sure his head stayed above the rim of the bath as he set the nude figure of his boyfriend down into the prepared, warm water. That seemed to be enough to jolt him awake, splashing quite a bit of soapy water on the floor, wall and Mello as Near's body shook awake with a gasp. He'd look down for a moment, bewildered to find that his table full of notes had been replaced by... soapy water?! A bubble bath?! How could this've happened?!

"Morning, sleepyhead," greeted Mello with a cheeky smirk. It was only then that Near realised that he _wasn't_ dreaming anything, and that his notes _hadn't_ somehow turned into a bubble bath - but that Mello was doing that stupid thing he always does. Always caring about him. "Please, tell me you didn't mess up my notes..." whined the smaller, almost entirely-wet boy.

Mello chuckled in response. "Love you too. No, trust me, I'll never forget the last time I made _that_ mistake," chuckled the blondie in response.

Near visibly relaxed at that, closing his eyes and almost sinking into the bathwater for a moment as the warm sensation of the water overcame his body. Nothing quite relaxed the body like a warm bubble bath, especially after he'd needed one for so long. The smell of lavender filled his nose, easing him even further at the smell of his favourite flower. "Mmmfff... thank you, Mello..." hummed the smaller boy, with a genuine, appreciative smile on his relaxed face.

"Hey, what're boyfriends for, right?" responded the ever-clever Mello, before he'd gently place a hand on the back of Near's head, slowly guiding the boy's head under the water, but not before explaining himself beforehand. "Now, don't worry, I'm just gonna sink your head under the water for a second or two. Don't freak out on me, yeah?"

And, once he'd wet Near's hair by popping his head underwater for a couple of seconds, Mello was quick to set Near's head back in it's comfortable position above the water. Near's wet white hair stuck to his face, making him look almost like some sort of ghostly woman from a horror film, which, admittedly, drew a chuckle or two out of Mello, who'd slowly begin to massage some shampoo into that neglected hair of Near's. "So, any luck on your case?" asked Mello, eager to make some small talk. Surely, with all the work he's putting in, Near was bound to solve it eventually, right? So that he might have some alone time with his boyfriend, right?

"Not really. No new leads. Witnesses are contradictory to one another. Still a lot of work to go," grumbled Near.

"Shit... was hoping I'd have more of a chance to spend some time with you," Mello explained, being sure to get Near's hair nice and soapy with his massaging hands. Admittedly, Near almost had an expression on his face akin to that of a happy cat receiving behind-the-ear scratches. "We still have yet to finish that TV show of yours, y'know. Might be fun to just chill out, watch some movies with your boyfriend?"

"Mmmhhh..." moaned the smaller boy, taking the idea into consideration as his boyfriend washed his hair. Complete state of euphoria, that's what he was in. "Sounds like a good idea, if we can get past three episodes without getting 'distracted'," retorted Near in a subtly cheeky, teasing way, that smile of his growing wider.

Mello was absolutely blushing, knowing exactly what Near was talking about, even if he intended to play the fool. "I dunno what you mean by that. I never get distracted. Ever."

"Is that so?"

"Yeah. Pfft. C'mon, I thought we knew each other better than that."

"We do. That's why I can say, with certainty, that when you cup my face in your hand, turn my head and kiss me, that's a telltale sign of you getting distracted."

Yep. Now Mello was _**definitely**_ blushing. No hiding that from anyone. "Alright, fiiiine, you've made your point..." he'd grumble, pouting a bit as he'd finish up his shampooing routine, washing his hands with the bountiful amounts of water the bath had on offer. "Now, I'm gonna go and pour us some coffee, so in the meantime, just wash that stuff out of your hair, yeah? Don't wanna have to dunk you under again," he'd say with a wink, to which Near would respond with little more than a happy, content nod. But, as Mello began to stand up from his seat beside the bath, he'd be pulled right back down and into a soft, loving kiss from his boyfriend, who'd let the affectionate smooch linger for a good few seconds before letting go with an equally loving smile. "Don't forget - I take it black."

And, when Mello had left to get them both some coffee, Near began to wash his hair with one thought at the forefront of his mind. Not the case. Not the copious amounts of work he did.

But the fact that he was so lucky, luckier than any man on the planet, to have a boyfriend that put up with him and still cared so much for him like Mello did. Truly, a keeper.

One might even argue, a soulmate.


End file.
